Who will be the next Falcons player inducted into the Hall of Fame?

The Atlanta Falcons have nine Pro Football Hall of Famers and 11 members in their Ring of Honor, two of which overlap.

The Hall of Famers are Morten Anderson, Bobby Beathard, Eric Dickerson, Chris Doleman, Brett Favre, Tony Gonzalaz, Claude Humphrey, Tommy McDonald, and Deion Sanders. The only two to be enshrined in both are Sanders and Humphrey.

The fact is the greatest players in franchise history aren’t in Canton, other than Humphrey and Sanders. Even then, Prime Time only spent five seasons in Atlanta. That’s the same amount of time Tony G spent with the Falcons, and he’s not in the Ring of Honor. Nearly all of the nine Hall of Famers spent most of their career away from Atlanta.

Tommy Nobis is probably the only member of the Falcons Ring of Honor that has a legitimate resume to be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but the next crop of candidates will surely be the greatest players in franchise history.

Two, in particular, will dominate conversations — Julio Jones and Matt Ryan. The pair brought Falcons fans some of their fondest memories, and both will surely have a chance of getting into the Hall of Fame, but one has much better odds.

Matt Ryan may be the greatest player in franchise history, but Julio Jones is a first-ballot Hall of Famer and The Athletic’s candidate for the next member of the Falcons to get into Canton.

Atlanta Falcons: Julio Jones, WR

Jones’ elite production over an eight-year stretch makes him a strong candidate. He had six seasons with at least 1,300 yards, tied with Randy Moss and Torry Holt for second behind Rice. Like Fitzgerald, Jones stood 6-foot-3 and weighed nearly 220 pounds, making him a primary game-plan consideration for defenses.

Matt Ryan played quarterback, the hardest position to play in sports, and was the greatest one in franchise history. It’s not particularly close either. The Falcons legend is being inducted into the Ring of Honor this year and will have a chance to get into the Hall of Fame, but being a quarterback is a double-edged sword.

Though he’s inarguably the greatest Falcons quarterback of all time, Matt Ryan is squarely behind three other signal callers from his time period — Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, and Peyton Manning. Whereas, Julio Jones was in the conversation for the best wideout in the NFL for a decade, along with Calvin Johnson, Larry Fitzgerald, and Antonio Brown.

Somehow, Matt Ryan is the greatest player in Falcons franchise history, but Julio Jones will be the one inducted into the Hall of Fame first.

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Photographer: Roy K. Miller/Icon Sportswire